ETA Claims Bombs, Says Shoot-Out Involved Members

Armed Basque separatist group ETA on Tuesday took responsibility for four bombs since mid-July, and confirmed its members were involved in a shoot-out in which two police officers were injured and a guerrilla died. Basque nationalist daily Gara, the group’s usual mouthpiece, published an ETA statement in which the armed group denied the authorities’ version of the September 15 incident as an attempted ambush. ETA, listed as a terrorist group by the United States and the European Union, did not provide its own explanation of the shoot-out but pledged to “clarify the circumstances…using all the means available.” The Ertzaintza Basque autonomous police force has said two ETA guerrillas lured two of its agents to the town of Lagran with reports of a traffic accident before opening fire on them with a sawn-off shotgun. One policeman lost an eye after receiving three shots in the face. Police found the body of ETA militant Arkaitz Otazua several hours later near the site of the gunfight. “The best tribute we can pay to Arkaitz and the rest of our fallen militants is to achieve the freedom of our people,” the ETA statement said. Full Story